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“Good Friday 2006"
Rev. Dr Robert Iles |
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“Good Friday 2006"
Rev. Dr Robert Iles |
There is an interesting section in Saturday’s paper.
Last Saturday featured three people on the page.
It is the obituaries column. .
An overview of their life is written up. Their achievements and accomplishments
Are written for all to see and appreciate. Then maybe in the last line
There may be an acknowledgement that they died from some illness or condition
And are survived by three people, two dogs and a budgie.
The death is seen as very sad and certainly the end of accomplishments.
Any reference to death is left to the last few lines, almost as an embarrassing admission of the mortality of the person.
If Jesus were in the
Saturday columns, at least a third of his autobiography would be about his
death.XHis death on the cross is seen to have accomplished
more than the rest of his earthly life as important as that was. His ministry
was local but the benefits of his death universal and forever.
Every book of the NT has at its heart the belief that Christ died for the sins of people
And that no one can be saved apart from him and his death.
As Acts 4:12 puts it: Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
The Cross of Christ is the only passport to eternal life.
It’s like that scary moment when you come back into Australia from overseas.
You approach the Customs officer with your passport.
You are sure he/she has been waiting just for you. You are certain there is a flashing light or asterisk against your name and the game is up.
The only way to gain entry is through this officer,
Who in the end almost smiles and then thumps a big stamp into your book.
Then you go to face the
inspectors who know exactly what you have brought in your luggage.
Entry is only through the officer’s approval.
The NT says entry to life is only through Jesus and his saving death.
His death is seen as the most important part of his life, the climax of his life and the purpose of his life.
Almost everyone’s death affects someone, even if it is only the undertaker.
Someone said, “So live your life that when you die,
Even the undertaker will be sad”. Or as one undertaker said to me, “Robert I’ll be the last man to let you down”.
Everyone’s death has
some affect. When Rev. Lloyd Kerley died last week at 66, we were sad that he
could not enjoy his retirement.
Some were angry and said so, memorably, in the funeral. Lloyd’s death affected
people.
But however sad we are don’t we believe that eternal life with Jesus Christ
Has the edge even on retirement?
That all that Lloyd stood for and spoke of is fulfilled in what by Jesus grace he knows fully? Have we become so in love with this life that eternity with the Lord
Is second best to fishing and bowling here?
Easter draws us back to the true perspective. Everyone’s death has some impact
And the ultimate impact of Jesus death is eternal.
Perhaps the more important the person the greater the effect of a death.
WW1 was begun when a man, Archduke Ferdinand was assassinated
By some fanatics when the Duke’s driver took a wrong turn.
The effects of the death were tragic.
Now if the Son of God dies, how much more important and dramatic is likely to be the impact of his death than any ordinary person.
We would expect there to be some dramatic outcomes from the death of such a person. And we are not disappointed.
So much so that one man can say when he goes visiting churches that the main thing he talks about is the cross of Jesus.
You would think that would be something best left unmentioned, an embarrassment.
Why not talk about Jesus as healer, as teacher, as example, as inspiration? .
But
instead this famous speaker and writer says he speaks about Jesus death more
than anything else.
He once write this 1 Cor.2: 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I
was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
It is the centre of the Gospel. How so?
God The Father so loved people that he sent someone to o pay the debt we owe Him.
We owe God perfect love, faith and obedience.
I noted last Monday the paper said many people were getting in arrears with their loan payments,
The highest percentage of any country in the world apart from NZ.
Well we are in arrears in what we owe the Lord.
Some say well “why can’t God just forgive these debts?”
. Like in the prodigal son parable. The lad comes home in a spirit of penitence, so can’t the Father just do that.
Well repentance is one thing, but we are still in arrears. We owe the Lord perfect, faith, love, devotion.
We can have a good relationship with the bank manager but the debt is still there. He won’t just say, let’s forget the thousands you owe and start again.
Something has to be done to handle the debt – to the bank and to the Lord.
Laws have been breached.
And we are helpless to pay the debt. There are few worse experiences in life than having debts you cannot pay. You brood on it day and night. It robs you of sleep.
You are desperate. It us numbing. You have desperate thoughts.
The Father proved his love for us by sending the agreeing Son to deal with the debt we owe Him that we are helpless and powerless to repay.
I remember taking a Bible study once and noticing that a lady named Grace appeared to have gone to sleep.
Preachers get used to seeing things like this so I was not too perturbed.
However we couldn’t bring the woman around. Worried, we rang the ambulance.
When the driver turned up he asked: is she a diabetic?
She was. He called for some sugar and somehow got her to swallow it.
She recovered but didn’t appreciate that she had ruined my Bible study.
She was helpless in her condition to do anything about it. She was utterly dependent, completely powerless.
Romans 5:6 puts this in a spiritual context.
You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.
We were hopelessly in debt
So the Father through the Son in the power of the Spirit came and through the Cross revived the helpless, the powerless, the spiritually collapsed.
He gave us the touch of life, he revived us in our spiritual coma.
Sin had done in our soul and conscience what lack of blood sugar had done in Grace’s body. He gave us through the Cross what was needed.
He stepped in and dealt with our lack, our deficit, our debt, the arrears we owed. He paid up for us and put us in credit with the Father.
On the Cross the Son dealt with or debts.
He offered a way ahead called reconciliation.
And it All began from the other side, by the one who came to us in our powerlessness,
Our collapsed state.
The illustrations I have offered you today were these:
a half to a third of column would be devoted to his death on the Cross.
2. I spoke of the Customs officer who knows about you and has the choice whether to admit you or not. Christ has the same choice.
3. I spoke of mortgage arrears and compared that with what we owe God to whom we owe our life and devotion. We are so hopelessly in debt to him we need his grace.
4. I spoke
of a woman who collapsed from a diabetic hypo while undermining my confidence as
a teacher. She was helpless,
powerless and needed another to bring her back to life. So we too needed a
Saviour to revive and create faith, hope and love in us.
Let us give thanks in prayer that that has happened.
Rev.
Dr Robert Iles
Golden Grove Uniting Church